CHARLESTON ARGUS. SATURDAY, MARCH 16, 1866.

Charleston Argus, 16 March 1867, Page 2

CHARLESTON ARGUS. SATURDAY, MARCH 16, 1866.

It is with 110 little pleasure we find, that j there is, at last, a chance of the long talked of tramway between here a'.d Westport being undertaken, and when completed, we venture to predict the most direct advantages to both places. At ; Westport, on Tuesday evening last, a meeting was held, at which nearly every business man attended, and without hesiI tation gave in his adhesion to the project, j A committee was formed to take all steps necessary to float the undertaking, and, as will be seen by an abridged lepoit of the 1 proceedings, the Pakihi people were, very , properly, to be eonsulted before proceeding j farther. T\vo of the members of this* j committee have been down during the week, and have, we understand, met with a | very favorable reception, and we doubt ' not the enterprise will meet with unquali- ' lied support in this locality. As a matter of speculation, with a view to splendid I interest on capital invested, it will commend itself to those seeking remunerative returns from the investment of their capital, and on this head there cannot be a shadow of doubt. /V West Coast contemporary, a month or two ago, said that it had been left to the West Coast to prove beyond question, the utility, as well as the profit of tramways in Mew Zealand, and his remark arose from the fact that the lines or portion of lines then constructed were paying enormous interest on the outlay. Since then the results have been still more startling, and a regular network of tramways will soon invest Ilokitika l ! and the Westland goldficlds ; wherever • | they have been introduced cheaper pro-1 1 visions, and a consequent reduction in the i 1 co>t of living has followed, as a matter of' ; course, whilst the relief that they have I afforded to many a heavily loaded pedes-1 trian can scarcely be e>timatcd. Tlu-y are ' worked at little cost, and can afford to : carry passengers at little more money ;han | would necessarily be expended in a longer I | and more wearisome tramp over the same! ui-t inee. The benefits derivable from the i construction of tramways are too well-' known to need further comment, except-1 ing as lar as such a nude of comniuiiica- 1 ,ii »n would be of advantage to this distiic.. I Although, up to the [ireseiit time, ( oasta t ' Cove has never witnessed a wreck, it is a | certain fact that on many occasions vessels 1

lime to lie off fur days, fore ilie elements are f.iv«»jalile and that merchants and storekeepers | been greatly inconvenienced ly this del JB Blink it how we may, theft doubt that in stormy ucftter, such a.s we j may soon expect to set in. we may be with-; out arrivals for some time together, and this eannot be without inflicting, at lea>t some injury to all resident liere. l»ut even admit!ing that the entrance was possible always, there must be a certain 1 amount of risk to vessels going i.i through so narrow a passage, and greatly i as we wish to set everything belonging to j ! the I'akilii in its best light, we really must j 'confess, that we think the immunity from accident that we have hitherto enjoved is attributable niore to the activity and ini telligence than to any intrinsic good qiffftfrh;* of our harbor. ; As affording facilities for travellers it will !be a great boon. At West port steamer* can go in and out at all times, and when the owners know that passenger traffic may be depended on by means of the tramway, many more than now trade there will then be put on. Again, by this means the coal that is m abundance here can be at once utilised. We are told that to the north of the Duller there are inexhaustible coal mines, anc there is considerable truth in the statement, but if we may judge from the past career of West port, its sleepy inhabitants \rill not exert themselves to get it, and in the meantime t'ae return trucks from Jiere could take loads at a low rate, and vessels would too gladly give a payable. price for it as profitable ballast. There is 110 difficulty at all known in getting coal here, and if it would fetch any thing whatever, thousands of tons would be readily obtained. Even granting that some of it is not equal in quality to other j seams on the coast, still the ease with whichr got, and the facilities for transport afforded by the tramway will enable us to seJi it at somewhere about half price. ' l)r. Hector calls it "useful coal," and if so j householders, both in Westport and other places,ivill use it at arelu ed price rather j than tfe better but more cosily mineral. ; This view admits that the coal is inferior, I : but at the same time, it is by no means' 1 certain that thr.t hitherto produced is the! 'best that is at command, and should! j superior be discovered greater results would follow its production. Looked at in any ligl i there cannot be a doubt that the Pakilii Tramway would be a great good to all in the district, and we hope, (or their own sakes, that all classes will join heartly in Topvarding the scheme proposed \